A storage system typically comprises one or more storage devices for storing client data. The storage system includes a storage operating system that functionally organizes the system by, inter alia, invoking storage operations in support of a storage service implemented by the system. The storage system may be implemented in accordance with a variety of storage architectures including, but not limited to, a network-attached storage environment, a storage area network and a disk assembly directly attached to a client or host computer. For example, the storage devices may be organized as a storage array. In some embodiments, a storage device may comprise a disk device commonly described as a self-contained rotating magnetic media storage device, such as a hard disk drive (HDD) or direct access storage device (DASD). In other embodiments, a storage device may comprise another type of storage device.
The storage operating system of the storage system may implement a high-level module, such as a file system, to logically organize the information stored on volumes as a hierarchical structure of storage objects, such as files and logical units (LUs). A known type of file system is a write-anywhere file system that does not overwrite data on disks. An example of a write-anywhere file system that is configured to operate on a storage system is the Write Anywhere File Layout (WAFL®) file system available from NetApp, Inc. Sunnyvale, Calif.
The storage system may be further configured to allow many servers to access storage objects stored on the storage system. In this model, the server may execute an application, such as a database application, that “connects” to the storage system over a computer network, such as a point-to-point link, shared local area network (LAN), wide area network (WAN), or virtual private network (VPN) implemented over a public network such as the Internet. Each server may request the data services of the storage system by issuing access requests (read/write requests) as file-based and block-based protocol messages (in the form of packets) to the system over the network.
A plurality of storage systems may be interconnected to provide a cluster architecture configured to service many servers. The storage systems of the cluster may be configured to communicate with one another to act collectively to increase performance or to offset any single storage system failure within the cluster. The cluster provides data service to servers by providing access to a shared storage (comprising a set of storage devices). Typically, servers will connect with a storage system of the cluster for data-access sessions with the storage system. During a data-access session with a storage system, a server may submit access requests (read/write requests) that are received and performed by the storage system.
A manager server may be used to manage a large number of storage systems for performing maintenance, monitoring, or other management functions on the storage systems. Currently, a simple list of the storage systems may be used to identify a specific storage system. However, when managing an increasingly large number of storage systems, it becomes more difficult to identify a specific storage system or identify faulty storage systems needing attention using the current simple lists. For example, a manager server may manage hundreds or thousands of storage systems, and an administrator would typically need to analyze the entire list of storage systems to identify specific storage systems. As such, there is a need for a better method of managing and identifying storage systems for allowing an administrator to manage a large number of storage systems.